Journaling through the Waiting room

It is easy to write when we feel overflowing with gratitude or clarity. What about the seasons where the ink feels dry and the heavens feel like brass?

There is a specific kind of silence that feels heavy. It’s the silence of an unanswered prayer, a direction not yet given, or a season that feels like it’s stretching on forever. When we are in these seasons, our journals can feel intimidating. We don’t want to write the same request for the hundredth time. We feel like we are nagging God, or worse, talking to the ceiling.

I have learned that the journal is not just for the harvest; it is for the winter, too.

practice of holding space

In seasons of waiting, I shift my journaling style. Instead of looking for new answers, I use the page to “hold space.” I write down what I know to be true, even if I don’t feel it right now.

• I know God is good.
• I know He has been faithful before.
• I know this silence is not an absence.

Don’t abandon the page during the silence. These entries the ones written in the dark often become the most precious ones we look back on when the light finally breaks.

your journaling prompts

• The “Even If” List: Write down the thing you are waiting for. Then write, “But even if I have to wait longer, I know this about You…” and list three characteristics of God (for example, You are kind, You are never late).
• Documenting the “Micro-Mercies”: When the big answer hasn’t come, look for the small ones. List three tiny ways God showed up today (a text from a friend, a warm cup of coffee, a moment of sunshine).
• The Psalm of Lament: Read Psalm 13. Write your own version, following its structure:

How I feel (The complaint), What I am asking for (The petition), Why I will still trust (The vow of praise)

With grace, Debbera